Editing Holland (section)

=== Reclamation of the land ===
[[File:Benthuizen dijk polder.jpg|thumb|left|[[Benthuizen]] [[polder]], as seen from a [[Dyke (embankment)|dike]]]]
The land that is now Holland has not been geographically "stable" since prehistoric times. The western coastline shifted up to {{convert|30|km|abbr=off}} to the east and storm surges regularly broke through the row of coastal dunes. The [[Frisian Islands|Frisian Isles]], originally joined to the mainland, became detached islands in the north. The main rivers, the [[Rhine]] and the [[Meuse|Meuse (Maas)]], flooded regularly and changed course repeatedly and dramatically.

The people of Holland found themselves living in an unstable, watery environment. Behind the [[dunes]] on the coast of the Netherlands a high [[peat]] plateau had grown, forming a natural protection against the sea. Much of the area was [[marsh]] and [[bog]]. By the tenth century the inhabitants set about cultivating this land by draining it. However, the drainage resulted in extreme soil shrinkage, lowering the surface of the land by up to {{convert|15|m|ft|abbr=off}}.

To the south of Holland, in [[Zeeland]], and to the north, in [[Frisia]], this development led to [[Floods in the Netherlands|catastrophic storm floods]] literally washing away entire regions, as the peat layer disintegrated or became detached and was carried away by the flood water. From the Frisian side the sea even flooded the area to the east, gradually hollowing Holland out from behind and forming the [[Zuiderzee]] (the present IJsselmeer). This inland sea threatened to link up with the "drowned lands" of Zealand in the south, reducing Holland to a series of narrow dune [[barrier island]]s in front of a [[lagoon]]. Only drastic administrative intervention saved the county from utter destruction. The counts and large monasteries took the lead in these efforts, building the first heavy emergency [[Dike (construction)|dikes]] to bolster critical points. Later special autonomous administrative bodies were formed, the ''[[waterschap]]pen'' ("water control boards"), which had the legal power to enforce their regulations and decisions on [[water management]]. They eventually constructed an extensive dike system that covered the coastline and the polders, thus protecting the land from further incursions by the sea.

However, the Hollanders did not stop there. Starting around the 16th century, they took the offensive and began [[land reclamation]] projects, converting lakes, marshy areas and adjoining mudflats into [[polder]]s. This continued well into the 20th century. As a result, historical maps of [[Middle Ages|medieval]] and early modern Holland bear little resemblance to present maps.

This ongoing struggle to master the water played an important role in the development of Holland as a maritime and economic power, and has traditionally been seen as developing the presumed collective character of its inhabitants: stubborn, egalitarian and frugal.